Settings help

lyns4wilson

I have become really confused over the past few months about the settings for my fitness pal when using the Charge HR 2 and wondered if anyone can set me right?
I'm unsure whether to set MFP activity level at low or lightly active? I work 3 days per week mostly at a desk/seated. I try to get 10000 steps each day. I usually have 2 walks per week that put my steps up to 18000-20000. 3 weeks out of 6 that is my main exercise then the other 3 weeks I go to spin class 2 times per week and 1 combat class on top of the walking as hubbys home from offshore.
Im not sure how much of my exercise calories to eat back, do i enable negative calorie adjustments and what do I set my activity level at?
Im so confused and havent lost weight for 5weeks, just maintained. I have lost 9lbs since January. I have weighed and measured my food so Im guessing i have something wrong on my settings but it's strange that the weight came off to start.
I've been using MFP for 3years and lost 60lbs easily to start then put 19lbs back on which im really struggling to lose now. I didn't have a fitbit when I lost the weight initially and I thought it would help.
Thanks.

SezxyStef

If I am using an activity tracker I set my activity to Sedentary as it tracks all movement.

If you don't want a huge adjustment and feel you are lightly active choose that...but not sure why as the tracker is suppose to give you the adjustment for all movement not just exercise.

heybales

Only thing changing the MFP activity level would cause is the amount of adjustment given as the day goes on.
The final at the end of the day would be the same.

But - if you vary meals a lot, not planning, then having closer to reality base eating goal would be easier as the day goes on, smaller adjustments, more related to the increased walking and workouts.

In either case, depending on when you go to bed, there are some final hours until midnight that MFP is estimating you are burning your BMR x 1.25 or 1.4, and Fitbit will report the next morning it was only BMR level burn.

So if you met your eating goal based on seeing it at 9pm and then sat on couch and went to bed - those 3 hrs difference will show the next morning as going over your goal.

But the amount is always about the same, so can easily plan on leaving that much in the green below goal.


Those adjustments are NOT exercise calories to eat back - they are MFP being wrong and correcting itself with a better estimate. If you were willing to trust MFP, trust it trying to correct itself too.

Negative allowed is if you might hit sick, slower days of less than MFP activity level - yes you should enable it.
Life lesson there to learn:
You do more, you eat more.
You do less, you eat less.

Measuring food as in volume is NOT nearly as accurate as weighing in grams.
And depending on food type and amount eaten - could wipe out a minor deficit - which frankly at this point you should have.

Likely you have a big deficit (pure guess - most women do that) because everyone wants it gone fast - despite fact it rarely went on fast.
This is probably stressing body out, causing cortisol retained water weight.
Stressed body underfeed also leads to poor workouts compared to better fed.

With only 10 lbs left, if I read that right, 1/2 lb weekly is reasonable and smart.

You are probably gaining, and can gain upwards of 20 lbs of stress related water weight.

Will that stress you out more?

Also, if summer is coming for you, and hotter workouts - body increases blood volume for sweating anyway.

Even though the combat class is probably far removed from the best estimate calorie burn using a HRM (just wrong type of workout) - it's also only weekly - so the amount inflated is minor compared to your active level.